New Jersey Student Wins NFTE Mid-Atlantic Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
June 21 2024 - 9:45AM
New Jersey Student Wins NFTE Mid-Atlantic Youth Entrepreneurship
Challenge
Global entrepreneurship education nonprofit Network for Teaching
Entrepreneurship (NFTE) has named five local student businesses as
the winners of its annual Mid-Atlantic Regional Youth
Entrepreneurship Challenge. The young entrepreneurs distinguished
themselves through innovative business ideas, which they will
present at the national finals in New York on Oct. 10 to compete
for the National Champion title and cash prizes.
Competitors pitched their original business concepts to a panel
of esteemed judges, including Eli Lesser, Senior Executive
Director, Wharton Global Youth Program at the Wharton School; Syed
Masihuddin, Vice President, District Executive at Santander Bank;
Aaron Pitt, Jr., NFTE alumnus and nursing student at Drexel
University; Carol Steinberg, Master Chair of Vistage Worldwide,
Inc.; and Dane Yoder, Assurance Senior Manager at Ernst & Young
LLP (EY US). They selected a first-place winner to receive $1,500,
a second-place winner to receive $1,000, a third-place winner to
receive $500, and two runners up to each receive $250.
- 1st Place: Rosalie Delgado from the Jewish
Renaissance Foundation in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, with
her business idea IndependMe, an app that helps kids gain their
independence via fun and interactive games.
- 2nd Place: Angel Rodriguez from Atmosphere
Academy in the Bronx, New York, with his business idea
Esthetic, which uses AI to match hair care clients and stylists
efficiently and effectively.
- 3rd Place: Roman Ortiz from the Jewish Renaissance
Foundation in Perth Amboy with his business idea
FAZE, which is an app that uses AI to help users decide what to
wear on a daily basis.
- Runner up: Elizabeth Manuchian from the Academy of
Finance and Enterprise in Queens, New York. with her
business idea Aqua Cuffs, which provides an effective and
environmentally friendly shark repellent solution.
- Runner up: Karla Perez from the Jewish Renaissance
Foundation in Perth Amboy with her business idea
RFTS, an organization that helps provide job opportunities and
resources to new migrants.
“Each year, we are blown away by the creativity and passion that
we see from students who compete in our Mid-Atlantic Regional Youth
Entrepreneurship Challenge,” said Rob Piercey, NFTE Mid-Atlantic
Regional Director. “Young people from across the region come
together to display their entrepreneurial mindsets and share their
innovative business ideas. The future certainly looks bright thanks
to these amazing students and their commitment to impact the world
around them!”
The NFTE Mid-Atlantic Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge was
presented by EY US and Santander, with signature support from Data
Systems Analysts, Inc. and Shopify and associate support from CBIZ,
the Citi Foundation, Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg LLP, and
PayPal.
For media inquiries, please contact Angelika Seaman,
603-504-8554, or Denise Berkhalter, APR, 917-281-4362, at
mediainquiries@nfte.com.
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About NFTE
Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) ignites the
entrepreneurial mindset with unique learning experiences that
empower students to own their futures. A global nonprofit founded
in 1987, NFTE provides high-quality entrepreneurship education to
middle school, high school and postsecondary students. NFTE brings
the power of entrepreneurship to students, regardless of family
income, community resources, special needs, gender identity, race,
or ethnicity. NFTE has educated more than a million students,
delivering our programs in school, out of school, in-person,
online, or through hybrid models. Visit nfte.com to learn
more.
- NFTE Mid-Atlantic Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
Champion
- 2024 NFTE Mid-Atlantic Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
Winners